By: Stephen Chen

Poland—Four lion cubs and one panther cub abandoned in the war zone, escaped a bomb attack, and went through a harrowing journey before arriving safely in Poland. The little carnivores will live at the Poznan Zoo while they and wait for the transportation permits to sanctuaries in the US and Europe. Due to the dangers from the war and Inadaptable environment, animals like these are facing some serious problems.

Before talking about these cubs, we need to know about the exotic pet. An exotic pet is an animal kept in captivity that is not meant to be domesticated. This is a big problem for Ukrainians, may of whom have exotic pets in their own houses. When they fled, these poor animals were left at home.

“An estimated 200 lions live in private homes [in Ukraine] and as the war rages on, they face increasingly grim outcomes,” said Meredith Whitney, wildlife rescue program manager at the IFAW.

Most of these exotic animals are rare, wild and come from far locations. They don’t have a chance to go back to their native habitats. In Ukraine, officials have been cracking down on the exotic pet trade, which has resulted in many owners abandoning their pets at welfare organizations. These organizations are trying to find a new home for the pets.

But it’s still a big problem not only in Ukraine, but also some developed countries. For example, wild animals can pose a significant risk to human health. Zoonotic diseases (diseases that can be transmitted from animals to humans) cause approximately a billion cases of human illness, and millions of deaths every year. So, the best way to protect us and animals is to keep them peace lives in the nature.

These five animals are lucky to have survived the 3 days trip from Ukraine to Poland. Though they will arrive at a new and safe place, they are not able to survive in the wild. Hope that they can get better lives in the future.